Tag: Prizoner

RATT & Roll returned to Cincinnati last Thursday Night. Two local acts opened this show, A Nervous Wreck, and Prizoner. I made it to Annies shortly after Prizoner started playing, so I can’t say how A Nervous Wreck’s set went, but Prizoner was on fire Thursday Night.

Prizoner’s set included covers by The Cult, AC/DC, Buckcherry, Kix, Cinderella, Puddle of Mudd, Skid Row, Tesla, Iron Maiden and a damn good cover of Motley Crue’s Saints of Los Angeles, as well as their own original tune, White Knuckle Ride. Prizoner has been a staple in the Cincinnati rock scene since the 80’s, and they did a fantastic job at getting the crowd pumped up and ready to see RATT.

Prizoner was so good that I though RATT would be a let down, after their excellent set. This was not the case tonight. Prizoner set the crowd up, and RATT tore the roof off of the club.

I have seen RATT twice in 2007, and Stephen Pearcy with his solo band in December. Each time, I thought Pearcy’s voice was a little better than the last time I saw him. His voice was damn near perfect this time around. I made a point to stand on the side of the stage where Warren DeMartini was playing. I am quite glad I did. His playing and solos were quite impressive.

Robby Crane might just be the best bass player RATT has ever had. Does this guy ever stand still during a show? His bass combined with Bobby Blotzer’s drums sounded great all night.

John Corabi played rhythm guitar and sang backup to Stephen Pearcy. I never noticed how much Corabi was singing until this show. I hope he doesn’t leave the band as it has been rumored of late. He will be greatly missed if he does quit RATT.

RATT played a pretty good selection of their hits including Tug of War, You’re In Love, Way Cool Jr., Lack of Communication, Lay It Down, Wanted Man, Back For More, a cover of Aerosmith’s Walkin’ The Dog, Nobody Rides For Free and a few other tunes that I can’t recall.

They also did an encore of Body Talk and Round & Round.

I didn’t decide to hit this show until a couple of days before. It was a great concert for a club show. I was glad I went. If I had any complaints at all, it would have wished RATT would have played longer.

Don’t miss RATT if they head your way. They have a few shows left on this tour.

I have included videos from RATT’s encore of Body Talk and Round and Below.

One of the best unsigned rock bands in Cincinnati, Ohio is Prizoner. I have been fortunate enough to see these guys play live several times around my local area. They have been a staple in the hard rock scene in Cincinnati for 20 years or so. Prizoner like many bands in the early 90’s put out a quality indie CD, trying like hell to get signed by a major label, but sadly never getting any bites.
Cincinnati isn’t exactly the place you want to be when you are a hot young band and trying to get signed to a deal. Geography, and the grunge movement stalled any chance they had to get signed and the band actually broke up for a while as a result. They reformed in 1998 and have been playing live shows around town ever since.

Young and Rejected is their debut release on Strugglebaby, a small indie label in Cincinnati. If you give this disc one listen, I think you will like this a lot. This disc is full of great 80’s hard rock. White Knuckle Ride, God Made Woman, and Little of Everything are prime examples of great rock that should have been heard by the world, just not the Ohio Valley.

Greg Anderson is the kind of front man that most bands would kill to have today. Not only is he an above average singer, he has the charisma and personality that so few singers today possess. Tim Keyes may be one of the best hard rock guitarists in the area, and a solid singer to boot. ( You should hear him sing when they play Judas Priest live…..wow!)

Prizoner has made both their debut CD Young and Rejected and their 1994 follow up Voodoo available for download for FREE directly from their website.

Just go to Prizoner’s website and grab Young and Rejected. If you are a fan of 80’s hard rock, you need to grab this. You can’t beat the price!🙂